Stowell said the whole travel industry is heading towards adopting an adventure approach because as travellers become more experienced, they are demanding new and unusual destinations and experiences. He backed this up with stats – in 2009/10 the mass tourism industry grew by an average of 4%, while adventure tourism grew 17%.

He said 60% of 18 to 41 year old adventure travellers don’t book with tour operators, preferring to go it alone, while 61% of 41 to 70 year olds do. This suggests several things – the obvious, that older adventure travellers would be more receptive to engaging with tour operator brands, but also that there is an opportunity to cater more for the agent-averse younger audience.